17 iOS 10 Tips, Tricks, and Features You Want to Know About

iOS 10 is the most exciting iOS update we’ve seen in a while thanks to a lot of useful and intuitive features. Instead poking around to find all the goodies, we’ve provided you with a list of some of our favorites. Enjoy!

Easy Emoji Messages

If you like using emojis iOS 10 is your new BFF. Type your message without using any emojis. When you’re done, select the emoji keyboard to receive suggested emoji substitutions for the corresponding word. Tap the words highlighted in orange to replace. It’s fast and fun to see just how interesting your messages get with this fun new feature.

Apple Pay on the Web

Apple Pay is very convenient at the point of sale in stores, but with iOS 10 it’s making its way onto mobile websites too. While shopping on your iOS device and using Safari, Apple Pay becomes a payment option on supported websites.

If you’ve already setup Apple Pay on your iOS 10 device you’ll see a “Buy with Apple Pay” button. Authenticate your purchase by using Touch ID and you’ll be through the check out process in no time.

Home App Meets HomeKit

Do you have a HomeKit compatible device? With iOS 10, you can control it right from your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Apple Watch. Group devices together to create scenes which can also be activated via the Home app or Siri commands. It’s great way to take control of your home from work or on the couch.

What are some of the things you can do? Adjust the temperature, lock doors, lower shades, change the lighting in a room to set the mood for movie night.

Flashlight Brightness

Adjust the brightness of the flashlight on your iOS 10 device by simply initiating a deep press (3D Touch devices) on the flashlight icon. A menu will pop-up to reveal low, medium, and bright intensity selections.

Siri and 3rd Party Apps

Third-party app developers have been chomping at the bit to get access to Siri. They finally got their wish. Now you can request a ride with Uber, send money via Venmo, start a run in Map My Run, use WhatsApp Messenger, and much more by simply saying “Hey Siri.” It’s a great way to quickly complete a task without a lot of interaction on your part. Finally Siri is earning her keep.

Take Photos Without Missing a Beat

Opening the Camera app to take a photo will no longer stop the music you’re listening to in iOS10. This means if you’re trying to capture someone rockin out to your sweet playlist, you’ll be able to snap a photo of it without skipping a beat (this feature doesn’t apply to videos).

Edit Live Photos

You either love or hate Live Photos, there really isn’t any many people in between. Thanks to the new Moments feature in photos, Live photos might become more popular among those who don’t like them. If you’re still on the fence, say hello to editing and stabilization abilities for these unique photos in iOS 10.

To edit a Live Photo, simply select the editing icon on the bottom of the screen just like you do with any other photo. Digital image stabilization is automatic, so you don’t need to do anything to enjoy this feature. iOS 10 everything in the background for you.

Unsubscribe from Email Lists

Do you get emails from a mailing list you’d like to leave? In iOS 10 it’s easy to quickly unsubscribe by clicking the “Unsubscribe” link at the top of the email. It’s a quick and easy way to uncluttered your inbox.

Optimize Music Storage

If you’re worried about running out of storage and have a lot of music on your device, iOS 10 lets you optimize your music storage. When your device is low on storage, those songs you downloaded but haven’t played in a while will automatically be deleted.

To enable this feature go to Setting > Music > Optimize Storage. After enabling select the minimum storage size you’d like to have on your device to avoid deleting all your music.

Smart 3D Touch

3D Touch got some much needed improvements thanks to iOS 10. Now you’re able to quickly add events from iMessage and emails, clear all notifications from your lock screen, see where your Uber is, or access even more fun ways to respond in iMessage.

The best way to find out just how much you can do with 3D Touch is to simply deep press on different functions to see what it presents. With developers now having access to 3D Touch, it’s best to play around and see what you uncover with each new app update.

Multi-language Support

Parlez-vous français, iOS 10 does! And many other languages too with new multi-language support. Start typing in another language and your iOS 10 device will easily pick up on it and offer you intelligent responses. You don’t need to worry about switching to a different keyboard for each language, it automatically recognizes the language you’re using.

In order to take advantage of this feature you need to add the keyboard for each language you want your device to recognize. To do this go to Setting > General > Keyboard > Keyboards and add the corresponding language keyboard.

Facial Recognition in Photos

A great way to find photos of specific people is by using the new facial recognition in iOS 10. Instead of searching through hundreds or thousands of pictures for that one picture you got of Tammy from work, jump into the native Photos app and open the People album to find it.

If one face has more than one album you can merge them to keep everything neat and organized. Be sure and drag your favorites to the top for fast and easy access. Try it out, it’s a lot of fun to see how many photos you have of your family and friends.

Visual Links in iMessage

Sharing information just got more interesting thanks to visual links in iMessage. Next time you send a link, and the recipient is on iOS 10, they’ll receive a visual preview. It’s a great way for your contacts to see exactly what you’re sharing.

The great thing about visual links is it works for almost everything! For example, when you share a YouTube video they see what it is before hitting play. Even more exciting is the video plays right inside iMessage.

When suggesting an application or song, your contact will get a lot of visual information to help them decide whether or not to click to learn more. This feels like click bait, but it’s from your friends so it’s totally acceptable!

Voicemail Transcripts

Voicemail transcripts are now available in this recent iOS update. Instead of having to wait to hear the message someone has left you, iOS 10 allows you to read it. When is this handy? How about during that important business meeting you can’t step away from. With voicemail transcription, you’re able to quickly see if you need excuse yourself for a family emergency or if it can wait.

Maps Gets 3rd Party App Extensions

One of the most exciting features in iOS 10 has to be third-party access to Maps. With these customizable extensions, which are created by app developers, you’re able to get a review of a restaurant near you on Yelp, make a reservation on OpenTable, and request an Uber without opening any other applications.

Once you experience how convenient this is, you’ll never want to go back to the old way of accessing and requesting the same information again.

Widget Customization

One thing iOS lacked was effective widget customization, but not anymore. Easily customize your lock screen with your favorite applications to get quick access to the most important information.

Want the latest from the native News app, simply activate a deep press on your favorite app icon to reveal the Add Widget option or swipe all the way right on your iOS device until you reach spotlight search and scroll to the bottom. Now select Edit to add, delete, or reorganize widgets.

Get Better Sleep

iOS 10 wants you to get a better nights sleep. The new Bedtime feature found in the native Clock app allows you to setup a time to wake up along with the amount of sleep you would like to get. On the days selected, a reminder alerts you when it’s time to go to bed and an alarm will go off at the time you want to get up.

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About Author

Jeremy McGinty

Jeremy McGinty is an iOS expert and has written over 350 articles relating to Apple and their products over the past two years. Writing about iPhones, iPads, and anything relating to Apple is what Jeremy does in his free time and you’re going to love reading how he’s a normal guy just like you. Jeremy is the most approachable person you’ll ever meet and you should try it out for yourself, send him a message here!

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